While other thinkers before him, such as Plato, Aristotle, and Friedrich Nietzsche, explored ideas related to universal patterns in the human psyche, Jung developed a more comprehensive theory of archetypes as fundamental, universal, and inherited patterns of behavior and imagery.
He believed these archetypes are present in the collective unconscious, a shared reservoir of unconscious memories and instincts that all humans inherit.
Jung identified numerous archetypes, such as the Hero, the Mother, the Shadow, and the Anima/Animus, and he argued that these archetypes manifest themselves in various forms across different cultures and historical periods, influencing our thoughts, emotions, and behavior.